Cowboy Church #246

 Hello my friends and welcome back for another service of Cowboy Church. 

Today's musical selection begins with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans with a medley of What Child Is This and Sweet Little Jesus Boy. This comes from their 1967 album, Christmas Is Always.

This is followed by Floyd Cramer with O Holy Night. This hymn was written in 1847. The lyricist for the song (even though this is an instrumental version here) was Placide Cappeau. Cappeau was a poet who rarely wrote about Christian subjects; however, the local priest asked him to write a poem for Christmas mass. He didn't know what to write so he looked at the story of Jesus' birth in the book of Luke and tried to place himself there. He then asked his friend Adolphe Charles Adams (who had composed over 80 operas) to write some music. This hymn would gain controversy in France, when the church learned of its writers. Cappeau had left the church and joined the socialist party. Adams was not Christian, but rather Jewish. The idea that neither of the writers of a Christian hymn were in fact Christian, upset many church leaders. These church leaders denounced the song and deemed it not fit to sing in a church. Yet despite this the hymn was one of the most popular Christmas songs in France at the time. This recording comes from Floyd's 1996 album, We Wish You a Merry Christmas. 

Afterwards is the Sons of the Pioneers with their 1937recording of Leaning on the Everlasting Arms. This hymn began with a man named Anthony Showalter. As a fan of gospel music and an elder in a Presbyterian church, he held many "singing schools" at various churches in the south. One day he received two letters from former students who were struggling after their wives had passed. To respond to these letters, Showalter consulted scripture. He came across Deuteronomy 33:27, "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." After reading this verse lyrics for a song chorus went through his head and he wrote down, "“Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms; Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms.” After using this in the letters to his former students he sent this chorus to his friend hymnist, Elisha Hoffman. In the letter he also wrote, “Here is the chorus for a good hymn from Deuteronomy 33:27, but I can’t come up with the verses.” Hoffman then wrote the rest of the lyrics to which Showalter put to music. The hymn was published in 1887.

Then comes Washington Phillips with his 1929 recording of I Had a Good Father and Mother.


This is followed by Johnny Cash with I Heard thew Bells on Christmas Day. This song began as a poem written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow on December 25th, 1864. At this time the United States was still in the midst of a civil war and this poem reflected and commented on this, ending with a message of hope, that even through all this war and violence, "God is not dead nor does he sleep." This poem featured two stanzas that were not used in the later hymn that directly referenced the Civil War. John B. Calkin composed the music in 1872.

Next comes Gene Autry with Frosty the Snowman. Gene recorded and released this song in 1950 (with When Santa Claus Gets Your Letter as a B-side). Later that same year, Jimmy Durante recorded it later the same year. This song was written by Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins, who wrote another holiday themed song (though for a different holiday), Here Comes Peter Cottontail, which Gene Autry also recorded in 1950.

Next is Emmylou Harris singing Light of the Stable. Emmylou recorded this song in 1975. She would later state "Light of the Stable is one of my favorite tracks we ever cut. It was the jelling of the original recording group, the combination of Brain's [Brain Ahern] production and how incredibly creative those guys were was perfect. There is almost more space on the track then there are notes and I always loved that." The song would become the title track of her 1979 Christmas album, which I personally consider one of my favorite Christmas albums. [the quote comes from the liner notes of that album]

Today's musical selection ends with Gillian Welch performing Beulah Land.  

Now for a Christmas Sermon.

Today's movie is Tex Ritter in The Whispering Skull (1944). 

Psalm 76

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph. A song.

1 God is renowned in Judah;

    in Israel his name is great.

2 His tent is in Salem,

    his dwelling place in Zion.

3 There he broke the flashing arrows,

    the shields and the swords, the weapons of war.

4 You are radiant with light,

    more majestic than mountains rich with game.

5 The valiant lie plundered,

    they sleep their last sleep;

not one of the warriors

    can lift his hands.

6 At your rebuke, God of Jacob,

    both horse and chariot lie still.

7 It is you alone who are to be feared.

    Who can stand before you when you are angry?

8 From heaven you pronounced judgment,

    and the land feared and was quiet—

9 when you, God, rose up to judge,

    to save all the afflicted of the land.

10 Surely your wrath against mankind brings you praise,

    and the survivors of your wrath are restrained.

11 Make vows to the Lord your God and fulfill them;

    let all the neighboring lands

    bring gifts to the One to be feared.

12 He breaks the spirit of rulers;

    he is feared by the kings of the earth.

Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for another service of Cowboy Church. Happy trails to you until we meet again. 

Cowboy Church #232

 Hello my friends and welcome back for another service of Cowboy Church.

Today's musical selection begins with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans with Have You Read the Bible Today. It is important for each of us to read our Bible each and every day. The Bible is not just some book; it is the living breathing word of God. It is easy for our faith and Christian Walk to become idle and stagnant and the easiest way for this to happen is to simply not read our Bible. Taking some time each day to read the Bible is the best way for our faith and our walk with God to continue growing and maturing.  This recording is the B-side of a 1955 Little Golden Record by Roy and Dale. The A-side was The Bible Tells Me So. 

This is followed by Patty Loveless with Rise up Lazarus. This comes from her 2001 gospel album, Mountain Soul. 

Afterwards is Jean Shepeard with When God His Pen of Love in My Heart. When God Dips His Love in My Heart was written by Cleavant Derricks a minister from Chattanooga, Tennessee, who spread the gospel throughout the mid-south. The hymn was published in 1944 by Otis McCoy for The Church of God's Tennessee Music and Printing Company (in Cleveland, Tennessee).  Other songs written by him include Just A Little Talk With Jesus, My Soul Is Satisfied and We’ll Soon Be Done With Troubles And Trials. Despite writing such well known hymns, Derricks didn't receive royalties from them. When he meet Aaron Brown from Canaan Records, Brown learned about this. Brown contacted BMI, a company that represents songwriters and BMI would give Derricks $14,000.

Next comes the Sons of the Pioneers with their 1937 recording of Lord You Made the Cowboy Happy. This is a song about appreciating the little things in life. This is something we should do every single day. The number of blessings that surround us every day is immeasurable. 

Then comes The Cowboy Trail Band with I Love to Tell the Story. When recovering from a sickness, Arabella Katherine Hankey wrote a poem about the life of Christ. This poem was broken into two parts the first being called The Story Wanted (published in January 1866) and the second called The Story Told (published in November 1866). I Love to Tell the Story comes from this second part. In 1869 William G. Fisher put this text to music and that is the version we know today. Still, it is worth noting that Hankey wrote her own music for these words, but her music was seldom used and is now forgotten. 

Next comes The Charlie Daniels Band with The Business of Love. This comes from the group's first gospel album, 1994's The Door.   In his memoir, Never Look at the Empty Seats, Charlie Daniels wrote, "I think the most pressure I was ever under as a songwriter was when I wrote the songs for our first gospel album, The Door. It was such a special project to me. I wanted it to be much more than just another gospel album. I wanted the lyrics to have impact and hopefully speak to some of the people who, like me, had such a hard time understanding the gospel message and were falling through the cracks." 

Now for Emmylou Harris with Drifting Too Far From the Shore. This comes from her 1987 gospel album, Angel Band. 

Today's musical selection ends with The Carter Family's 1930 recording of On My Way To Canaan's Land. The group recorded this song on 25th November 1930 at the Auditorium, Memphis,TN.

Now for the sixth chapter of the Buck Jones movie serial, The Red Rider (1934). 

Now for a message from the Reverand Billy Graham. 

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Colossians 3:13 

Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. Luke 9:23

"If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor." John 12:26

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:11

Whoever would foster love covers over an offense, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends. Proverbs 17:9

Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for another service of Cowboy Church. Happy trails to you until we meet again. 

Summer Concert Series: Down from the Mountain (2000)

 The movie, O Brother Where Art Thou (2000) brought a renewed interest in folk and bluegrass music. In fact the music was so important to that movie that a concert film was created based around the performers who did the songs heard there. As strange of an idea as this is, Down From the Mountain works wonderfully.

Despite the presence of D.A. Pennebaker (Don't Look Back (1967), Monterey Pop (1968)) as one of the directors there is little cinematic about this movie. You can close your eyes and simply listen to the music and get pretty much the same out of it. That may sound like a major insult, but when the music is this good one hardly needs anymore. Those who know my taste in music (or anyone who reads my Cowboy Church posts) will hardly be surprised to hear me praise this movie, it is a perfect example of what I listen to when I am not watching movies. Such incredible artists as Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss and Union Station, The Cox Family, Ralph Stanley, Gillian Welch, David Rawlings, John Hartford and The Whites perform here and all of them are at the top of their game. From the perfect voices of Emmylou Harris and Alison Krauss, to the incredible lyrics of Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, to the incredible musicianship of Ralph Stanley and Union Station, this film gives country, folk and bluegrass fans all they could want from a concert movie and much more.

A pure auditorily treat, even if cinematically it leaves some to be desired. 

-Michael J. Ruhland

Cowboy Christmas #2

Hello my friends and welcome back to another edition of Cowboy Christmas. Here I share Christmas music from your favorite cowboys as well as some bible verses related to Christmas. 

Starting today's music selection is The Sons of the Pioneers with a lovely rendition of Christmas on Plains. Next comes Roy Rogers and The Jimmy Wakely Trio with Silent Night. This may be one of the finest versions of this classic Christmas carol. Next is Wesley Tuttle with his 1945 rendition of Christmas Carols By The Old Coral. Though Wesley Tuttle may not be a familiar name to many of you, my fellow film buffs will have hears his voice before. This is because he provided the yodeling for The Silly Song in Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). He would also be an actor in some western films with his wife, actress Marilyn Myers. Cowboy actor/singer Tex Ritter would also later record this song, which is appropriate consider at one time Wesley would be Tex's guitar player. Gene Autry helped popularize some of the most famous Christmas songs of all time, one of these was Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer which he recorded in 1949 with The Pinafores. His version is still one of the finest renditions of this classic song. Next is Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys with their incredible 1945 recording of Empty Chair At The Christmas Table. This is followed by Johnny Cash's wonderful version of Merry Christmas Mary. Ending this musical selection is Emmylou Harris with the title song from her 1979 Christmas album Light of The Stable.




















Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift! 2 Corinthians 9:15

Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. Luke 2:11

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. Matthew 1:21

But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Galatians 4:4-5                

And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 1 John 5:11

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her. Luke 1:38


But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. …" Luke 1:30

“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” – John 1:29

Thank you for joining me. Come back next week for more Cowboy Christmas goodness. Happy trails to you until we meet again.



-Michael J. Ruhland.

   

Cowboy Church #30

Hello my friends and welcome back for another service of Cowboy Church. 

We begin our musical selection off with The Maddox Brothers and Rose's 1948 recording of a gospel classic, Precious Memories. With their flashy clothes and on stage performance style, The Maddox Brothers and Rose received the title, The World's Most Colorful Hillbilly band. However just as much as over the top they could be, the group could also turn in a really heartfelt performance of a classic song as can be seen here. Following is George Jones with another classic gospel song, Just a Closer Walk With Thee. George delivers this song in the incredible way that only he can. There has never been and there will never be a voice like George Jones'. The TV show Hee Haw had some of the corniest jokes in all history, despite this though when the show focused on music, it took this music very seriously. An especially great example is when the show would have a performance by the Hee Haw Gospel Quartet (Buck Owens, Roy Clark, Grandpa Jones, Kenny Price). One may notice that these gospel performances are some of the rare times you could see Grandpa Jones without his hat. Here is them performing Shall We Gather at the River from a 1977 episode. Next is Emmylou Harris' hauntingly beautiful version of Wayfaring Stranger. I saw Emmylou in concert just a couple days ago and she was incredible. If you ever get a chance to see her don't pass it up. After this comes The Sons of the Pioneers with a 1951 recording of  musical version of The Lord's Prayer. This is followed by Roy Rogers and Dale Evans' 1955 recording of The Lord is Gonna Take Good Care of You. We end with Gene Autry's 1945 recording of Silver Spurs on the Golden Stairs. 



















 “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” Colossians 3:23-24For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God Ephesians 2:8 I am telling you the truth: those who hear my words and believe in him who sent me have eternal life. They will not be judged, but have already passed from death to life. I am telling you the truth: the time is coming—the time has already come—when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear it will come to life. Just as the Father is himself the source of life, in the same way he has made his Son to be the source of life. And he has given the Son the right to judge, because he is the Son of Man. John 5:24-27

 Everyone must die once, and after that be judged by God. In the same manner Christ also was offered in sacrifice once to take away the sins of many. He will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are waiting for him. Hebrews 9:27-28When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy. Psalm 94:19So I recommend the enjoyment of life, for there is nothing better on earth for a person to do except to eat, drink, and enjoy life. So joy will accompany him in his toil during the days of his life which God gives him on earth. Ecclesiastes 8:15I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. John 14:27

Now these are the last words of David. David the son of Jesse declares, The man who was raised on high declares, The anointed of the God of Jacob, And the sweet psalmist of Israel, "The Spirit of the LORD spoke by me, And His word was on my tongue. <sub><sup>2Samuel 23:1-2

Thank you again for joining me for another service of Cowboy Church. Happy Trails to you until we meet again.</sup></sub>


-Michael J. Ruhland


  

Movie Review: Country Music - A Film By Ken Burns

Michael's Movie Grade: A-

As every reader of this blog knows, I am a huge country music fan. As such it is no wonder that Ken Burns' recent country music documentary had such an appeal to me. It certainly did not let me down in the least.

This is a very in depth look at the history of country music. However how wide reaching country music is, this film could no cover everything. There were artists I wished could have been discussed much more. For instance The Sons of the Pioneers and Roy Rogers (and Dale Evans receives no mention at all) only got passing mentions and I certainly would love to have heard more about Lynn Anderson, The Statler Brothers, Jim Reeves, Johnny Rodriguez, Tex Ritter, Charley Daniels, George Strait and Tompall Glaser. To cover that much would have been an impossibility, so this becomes little more than nitpicking. There is a lot to learn in this movie even from country music buffs like me. Also it is really nice to see DeFord Bailey get the attention he deserves. As a harmonica player myself DeFord is definitely an influence on me. I also loved that they payed tribute to country music from artists who are not known for country such as Ray Charles, Bob Dylan and The Byrds.

The highlight of this movie is the interviews. We get to see true country music legends discuss country music. It is always a joy to see Kris Kristoffeson, Charley Pride, Loretta Lynn, Hank Williams JR. (when the film focuses on Hank Williams Sr. the subtitle under Hank Jr literally says "Hank Williams Jr. - Son"), Dwight Yoakam, and Willie Nelson. It was also a very nice surprise to see Merle Haggard and Little Jimmy Dickens, who had passed away recently. Charley Pride always seems like the nicest guy in the world whenever I see him talk. If there is anybody in country music I would like to be friends with, it is Charley Pride. Charley is of course one of the all time great country singers and I wish more people I knew were fans. Marty Stuart shows how he truly is country music's resident historian. Emmylou Harris is a delight and her passion for country music can be felt each time she talks. Dwight and Merle often stole the show. They both would sing the songs as they were talking about them and even singing brief snippets of the songs, you could hear the incredible emotion in their voice fully be reminded of why these two are such great singers. They just have a perfect way with words and a great sense of humor. I love Merle stating that if anyone doesn't like Bob Wills they are under suspicion with him, or Dwight saying that Lovesick Blues is sentimental to its core but also sticks its middle finger up at the world. Hearing Dwight yodel that song is also a highlight, and I want to see him do a full cover of that song.

Plus getting to hear songs by all those previously mentioned plus Jimmie Rogers, The Carter Family, Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Lefty Frizzell, Pasty Cline, Gene Autry, Roy Acuff, Buck Owens, Bill Monroe, Townes Van Zandt and more certainly didn't hurt the film at all.

Most of all though this film is a love letter to country music and a lovely heartfelt one at that. I found myself singing along with each song, remembering why I fell in love with the genre. This movie made me fall in love with Country music all over again.

-Michael J. Ruhland  

Songs From Honeysuckle Rose (1980)

As I have mentioned many times on this blog, I adore country music. I have had it on my mind a lot lately due to Ken Burns' excellent Country Music documentary on PBS. As this is a film blog and I have country music on my mind, I feel it is only right for me to share some country songs from the movies. One of the most popular and best country music movies is Honeysuckle Rose (1980), featuring two country music legends, Willie Nelson and Emmylou Harris (as well as Dyan Cannon who proved she could have had a great career as a country singer in this movie). Enjoy these song performances from the movie.   

-Michael J. Ruhland

Cowboy Church #18

Hello my friends welcome back for another round of Cowboy Church. 

Our musical selection starts off with The Sons of the Pioneers performing What a Wonderful Joy in a classic 1941 recording. Next comes Emmylou Harris with a beautiful rendition of Where Could I Go But To the Lord. This comes from her excellent 1987 gospel album, Angel Band. This album consisted of Emmylou performing various hymns acoustically. Doing backing vocals for this recording is Vince Gill. Next comes Alison Krauss and the Cox Family with I Know Who Holds Tomorrow. This is from their 1984 album of the same name. Sidney Cox said that this was one of his mother's favorite songs and she used to sing it whenever working in the kitchen. After this comes Roy Acuff's 1941 recording of The Precious Jewel. Roy wrote this song himself and the melody would later be used for a later song he would record, The Prodigal Son. Next comes Rex Allen performing the lovely Range in the Sky. We end with Eddie Dean's 1955 recording of Hillbilly Heaven. He co-wrote this song with Haal Southern. The song would later become a hit for another singing cowboy, Tex Ritter.  

Next is the King of the Cowboys, Roy Rogers on TV's This is Your Life (1950-1961). This episode comes from 1953.




Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the LORD, not for human masters. Colossians 3: 23
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.  Galatians 2:21

 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. Romans 6:14For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

“And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15

Thanks for joining me again for Cowboy Church, come back next week. Until then Happy Trails to you until we meet again.




















-Michael J. Ruhland